Middle Peninsula airport to add 31 jobs with defense contracting firm

Fulcrum Concepts to create 31 jobs, make $4.6 million investment

January 26, 2012|By Matt Sabo, msabo@dailypress.com | 757-247-7872

A small defense contracting firm whose employees are former Special Operations soldiers plans to invest $4.6 million in a training facility at the Middle Peninsula Regional Airport in King and Queen County near West Point, adding 31 jobs over the next three years.

Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Fulcrum Concepts' plans on Thursday. A minimum $100,000 state grant will assist King and Queen County with the project, with additional funds available through other state agencies and programs, including the Virginia Department of Transportation.

Landing a business such as Fulcrum Concepts is a coup for the once-struggling airport. In 2010 a reconstituted authority overseeing the airport and new manager turned the airport's annual bottom line from a $30,000 deficit to $200,000 surplus.

Fulcrum Concepts intends to invest $4.6 million in providing aircraft integration of specialized weaponry and avionics as well as maintenance operations at the Middle Peninsula Regional Airport facility, said a spokesman for McDonnell. The company will also provide tactical intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance training for both military and civilian special operations personnel.

Doug Meredith, director of Gloucester's Economic Development Authority and a member of the Middle Peninsula Regional Airport Authority, said the Fulcrum Concepts project is very important for the airport. The airport, about 20 minutes northwest of Gloucester Court House, boasts a 5,000-foot runway and has highway access to Interstate 64.

"It is very definitely a next step in the development of the airport," Meredith said.

Michael Zinanni, managing member of Fulcrum Concepts, said Virginia provides an excellent environment for many of the core interests of the company and the Hampton Roads area is one of the largest concentrations of military in the country.

"This provides Fulcrum Concepts with a great customer base, as well as a large pool of skilled individuals," he said.

King and Queen County Administrator Tom Swartzwelder said Fulcrum Concepts will build a large hangar and a corporate headquarters. The airport has invested in infrastructure such as a new taxi way and made physical improvements to all buildings over the past two years to lure businesses, Swartzwelder said.